15. Chapter 15 (1/2)

thank you for all the reviews! they mean a lot to me! thank your for the grammar and wording corrections too! i have a running list and one day, i will sit down and go back and make the necessary changes. sorry i am posting so late. i decided my son and i needed a day. we had a ton of fun! i have been somewhat working on another story. i am still making good time through this one, but this plot bunny kept running through my mind and i had to do something with it. i want to share it with you to see if anyone would be interested. it would be kitty and my oc oliver. he has a different background and he arrives at netherfield with darcy and bingley. it's interesting. i call it 'kitty takes a turn.' it is possible that mary will take a turn, too, eventually. i have not abondonded my other stories connected to a new life for catherine bennet, i am working on those as well, but they are slow going. kitty takes a turn is still a long way from being posted, i just wanted to know if anyone would be interested.

as always, i hope this chapter doesn't disappoint. it also explains a bit as to how oliver knows so much. i think i may have mentioned some of the things in some of my chapter notes several chapters ago.

conversation continued for another half hour. amelia came down to say her goodbyes before the ladies left for the gardiner's.

"i shall see you all tomorrow evening. i shall be the envy of the restaurant, dining with so many lovely ladies," said oliver as he helped them into the gardiners coach.

"can you believe it?!" exclaimed maria. "first, we dine at rosings, and now, we shall dine in a fine restaurant here in town! and many of the ton are still here this time of year! i shall have so much to share when i return home!"

"i dare say you shall," conceded lizzy. she had been very quiet for most of the day.

it did not take them too long to reach their destination. they had an early tea and worked on dresses for a little while. before they knew it, it was time for bed. jane was mostly ready for bed and putting her hair in a

aid when she noticed lizzy sitting on the bed with a letter in her hand.

"lizzy?"

lizzy looked up at her and she noticed her eyes were red, as though she had been crying.

"what's the matter?" she asked, moving to sit next to her sister.

"everything just seems so wrong. our lives are changing too fast. everything i have ever thought and accepted has turned on me. charlotte is married to mr. collins. you're marrying mr. andrews. mr. darcy is not all i thought he was and mr. wickham is a fraud!"

"lizzy, what are you talking about?"

without really meaning to, she began to tell jane everything she had purposely left out of her letters.

"and then he came to the house and confessed his love for me. it was horrible, jane," lizzy sniffled from her place in jane's arms. "i absolutely detested the man, but pointing out everything that displeases him about our family and circumstance and saying he was willing to put it all aside… i didn't show it, but it hurt as much as it made me angry. even if he did feel that way, he should have kept it to himself!"

"oh, lizzy."

"i refused him, obviously. i told him he was the last man i would ever marry."

"you didn't!"

"i did. i said other things as well, but i would rather not speak them again. right now at least."

lizzy rose and went to the water bowl. as she washed her face, jane pulled back the sheets and climbed in. lizzy soon followed. they lay in the dark for a bit.

"when did you decide mr. wickham was a fraud?" asked jane, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"the letter i had was from mr. darcy. he found me in the grove the next day and asked that i read it. he made no apology for his actions against you and mr. bingley, but he went on to explain his history with mr. wickham. they were raised together and his father did show favor to him, but as mrs. andrews described mr. ruthers, mr. wickham made bad decisions and has yet to change course. after his father passed, mr. wickham denied the living old mr. darcy left for him and requested three thousand pounds instead. mr. darcy granted it and he thought he would never hear from him again."

"i take it he did."

"yes. it's so awful, jane! his sister is to inherit thirty thousand pounds. she was taken from school and was at ramsgate with her governess. apparently, mr. wickham had arranged through her governess to meet with miss darcy, and had convinced her to elope. they would have, had mr. darcy not come to surprise his sister. she was devastated when she learned the truth. this all happened a mere few months before he joined mr. bingley at netherfield."

"that is awful, but it does explain his actions."

"yes, it does. jane, are you sure you're making the right decision? marrying mr. andrews?"

"yes, i am. i cannot say that i really knew what i expected when i married, but this is much better i think. i admire oliver, and i can respect him. i have found that being able to respect my spouse is very important. respect and trust go hand in hand in my mind. lizzy, as i told you before, i cannot respect a man who lets others make his decisions. i also cannot trust a man who left me once because of the opinions of others. oliver is a good man. yes, he can be a bit over bearing, and he likes to have his own way, but he is also very sweet and accommodating. we all have our baggage, and we have been honest with each other from the start. i am very happy with my choice, lizzy."

"i will not say that i agree with your decision, and i am sure that in other circumstances i would have gotten along with mr. andrews from the start, but i will accept it. i am sure he will grow on me in time. now, is there anything else you have been keeping from me?"

jane felt a bit nervous. she wasn't sure how much she should tell her, but she knew lizzy would know if she held anything back.

"i want you to understand that i knew nothing until after i agreed to marry him. he didn't want to influence my decision, and to be honest, he didn't want me to choose him because of it." she then told her about the contract and settlements. jane giggled at her wide eyes and gaping mouth.

"you can't be serious! but you are! you are serious!"

"i think it was more for our aunt and uncle than for us… at first anyway. they have been worried for us. they have shared many things between themselves."

"he seems to have a knack for collecting information."

jane snorted. "if information were currency, he would be very rich."

"he is very rich!" laughed lizzy.

"i asked him how he knew so much, and he said members of the ton are always passing information about anything and anyone. if you want to know something about someone, you need only ask the right person. he simply notes the things that might be important. he actually takes notes! his mother teased him about it one day. he also has several people he keeps in regular contact with. oliver